Return to Assessment: Linking Teaching and Learning

Assessment in Alberta: Discussion Paper

This discussion paper explores internationally accepted principles and practices of fair assessment within a context of critical thinking and the Alberta Social Studies Program of Studies.

Table of Contents

Overview

Speaking the Language of Assessment

Research Base

Q1.	What will students learn?
Q2.	How will we know learning has occurred?
Q3.	How will we collect and provide evidence of learning?
Q4.	What activities will enable students to learn?
Q5.	How does formative assessment (assessment for learning) nuture critically…
Q6.	How will students receive feedback?
Q7.	How can summative assessment (assessment for learning) enrich the learning process?
Q8.	What is the role of student reflection and goal setting?

Conclusion

Bibliography

Acknowledgements

Question 2 – How will we know learning has occurred?

Assessment experiences are designed to gather evidence that students have met the expectations of the learner outcomes. In order to do this, teachers must develop a deep understanding of both the intent and content of the program of studies. Teachers examine and "unpack" the outcomes (Wiggins and McTighe) or in other words, articulate criteria that form the basis for making judgements about the quality of student learning.

This process of unpacking the outcomes is easier to do with some outcomes than with others. In Alberta social studies, the Skills and Process outcomes begin with verbs that can be easily observed. It is fairly straightforward to observe students as they compare and contrast, filter for bias, articulate a plan of action, and so forth.

The Values and Attitudes outcomes present more of a challenge. How will teachers know, for example, if students appreciate the variety and abundance of natural resources in Alberta? These outcomes are best framed within the realm of habits of mind - qualities such as respect, open-mindedness and self-reflection. While these outcomes may not yield quantitative assessment data, they represent a critical component in supporting the development of the core concepts of citizenship, identity and multiple perspectives that are at the heart of the Social Studies Program of Studies.

Knowledge and Understanding outcomes reveal an interesting combination. The specific outcomes, shown in bold font, begin with verbs. The bulleted items, however, are phrased as inquiry questions. Knowledge and Understanding outcomes must be paired with Skills and Process outcomes in order to see evidence of the learning.

Consider the criteria that flow from the Knowledge and Understanding outcomes in the following example:

Learner Outcome:

7.1.4
Students will assess, critically, the economic competition related to the control of the North American fur trade by exploring and reflecting upon the following questions and issues:

How did the fur trade contribute to the foundations of the economy in North America? (ER, LPP, TCC)

Discussion:
At first glance, the bulleted question appears to be a content-based item. Students could answer this question by providing a list of ways the fur trade impacted the economy in North America.

However, it is the relationship between the specific outcome (in bold) and the bulleted item that is important. In order to meet fully the intent of the outcome, students must interact critically with the content. One way to accomplish this is to turn the content into a problem, as in the following critical challenge:

What is the most important way that the fur trade impacted the economy in North America? Provide reasons for your choice.

In order to complete this critical challenge, students will need to access background information and develop criteria for judging the impact of the identified factors. For example, students might suggest that the criteria for deciding or judging the most important factor would be the number of people impacted, the degree to which people were impacted or the long-lasting nature of the factor. The factor the students choose is not as important as how well they support the reasons for their choice.

Students demonstrate their understanding of the content as they:

evaluate impact of factors on the economy
provide support for opinion.

These processes become the criteria or the basis that teachers use for making a reasoned judgement regarding student performance.

In this scenario, both students and teachers are using criteria. Students use criteria as the basis for evaluating the impact of factors on the economy. Teachers use criteria as the basis for evaluating student performance. Although the context is different, the process is the same – articulating the basis on which reasoned judgements are made.

As teachers clarify their understanding of the outcomes by articulating criteria, it is essential to share those criteria with students. As we help students understand "what counts" (Gregory, Cameron and Davies 2000, p. 7), the stage is set for their success.

Inherent in and flowing from the criteria is the performance standard. That is, what does good decision making, or any other critical thinking skill, look like for a student in a particular grade? The learner outcomes provide the basis for articulating the standard. Specific wording within the grade level outcomes, including the skills and processes outcomes, provides support in helping teachers articulate the standard of performance. Examination of exemplars of student work at varying levels of proficiency provides an opportunity for students to think critically about their own work, measure it against the standard and set about to make adjustments to improve the quality of their work.

Next Section: Question 3

Last updated: December 15, 2008 | (Revision History)
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